Therefore Go

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matthew 28:18-20

 …for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”… “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:5, 8

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Romans 8:16-18

I hope you’ve taken the opportunity over the last few days to read, re-read, and ponder the above scriptures. I found myself leaping with joy as I read these scriptures again this morning. We’ve been talking about how powerful God is. We’ve reminded ourselves of How His power is made perfect in our weakness. Today I want to discuss the authority we have as Christ followers and why authority is so important.

When Jesus is getting ready to ascend into heaven, He understands his physical, human body will no longer be on earth. Throughout His ministry, He exercised His authority given Him by His Father God through The Holy Spirit. Jesus demonstrates his God-given power & authority throughout His ministry. He didn’t have power without authority given to Him by His Father. Without authority, there is no power.

The Great commission, (Matthew 28: 18-20) is Jesus exercising the authority His Father has given Him and giving that same authority to us. God considers us Joint heirs with His own Son. The same authority He gave Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt, is the same authority He gave His own Son, who in turn, gave it to you and me.

The same power He gave Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt, is the same power He gave His own Son, who in turn, gave it to you and me.

If we weren’t given authority, we can’t demonstrate His power.  However, we have been given this authority, and it can be demonstrated through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Something very important to remember as I move forward. Yes, we’ve been given authority and power, but it’s important to remember it’s not our power, its God’s power through the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. The more we are in total surrender, the more The Holy Spirit is able to work through us. We tend to get in the way of the Holy Spirit’s ability to work. I tend to get in the way of the Holy Spirit’s ability to work. Maybe that’s why “His power is made perfect in our weakness.” The weaker we are, the harder it is for us to get in the way of The Holy Spirit’s ability to work.

I don’t know about you, but that’s a lot for my brain to comprehend. Jesus said… “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Therefore Go …” What does it mean to exercise the power and authority given to us by Jesus from His (our)Father, God? What does it mean to make disciples of all nations? What does “Therefore go.” mean in our lives today?

We have big shoes to represent. We represent Jesus. He took on pain, suffering, rejection, hurt, and humiliation for mankind. He was despised and rejected, yet He still showed love and forgave those who hurt Him.

Tomorrow we’ll discuss 2 simple words. “Therefore, go,” as I try to comprehend the importance of the authority we’ve been given as Christians.

How will you Devote2day?